Round two of the East Coast Logistics Sprintcar Series was held at AusDeck Patios Archerfield Speedway last night with a star-studded field of twenty-six Sprintcars set to do battle around the tight Brisbane circuit. David Murcott was the early leader of the feature event, but his A-Main raced ended prematurely when he became involved in an incident with a lapped car. In a 30-lap main event that was plagued by nine stoppages, the race between the top five was brilliantly breath-taking. Andrew Scheuerle had a reasonably comfortable lead, but was, on more than one occasion, seriously challenged for his position by both Lachlan McHugh and Luke Oldfield. McHugh and Oldfield had an enthralling battle over second and third that lasted most of the race, while Brent Kratzmann had an impressive run in fourth, putting a serious challenge to both McHugh and Oldfield, while trying to defend his position from a hard charging Bryan Mann. Andrew Scheuerle managed to hang on to take the win, while Lachlan McHugh, still in his rookie season, secured second with Luke Oldfield crossing the line in third to fill the final podium position. Brent Kratzmann and Bryan Mann rounded out the top five, while Ben Hilder finished an impressive sixth after transferring from the B-Main.

Qualifying got underway and it was Luke Oldfield who topped the leader board at the end of the qualifying session, stopping the clock at a quick 12.008 seconds. Lachlan McHugh secured second quick with a 12.105 second lap, just 0.097 seconds slower than Oldfield. Bryan Mann, Andrew Scheuerle and Peter Lack rounded out the fastest five, while the top fifteen were separated by less than half a second. In fact, the top twenty-five cars were separated by less than 1.2 seconds.

Heat one started with Rob Hamilton from pole position and Brandon Rawlings alongside, while Steve Greer and Brent Kratzmann filled the second row. Rawlings got a great start from the outside and quickly took control of the race, while Kratzmann from position four swiftly followed, racing around the outside of Hamilton through turn one to secure second. Luke Oldfield, who had started from position six, raced around Greer in turn one before trying to slip underneath Hamilton in turn two. Oldfield couldn’t quite get the job done but a second attempt through turns three and four was more successful for the Q36 Titman Garages racer. Andrew Marks and Anthony Lambert battled at the rear of the field but it was the mid-field race between Steve Greer and Kevin Titman that had everyone captivated. Titman was all over the back of Greer as he searched relentlessly for a way past, looking both high and low while Greer blocked his every move. Brandon Rawlings went on to take the win ahead of Brent Kratzmann, Luke Oldfield, Rob Hamilton, Steve Greer, Kevin Titman, Anthony Lambert, Mark Pholi and Andrew Marks.

Richard Morgan and Scott Doyle shared the front row for the start of heat two, with Ben Hilder and Brent Aprile right behind them on the second row. Morgan and Doyle raced side-by-side into turn one but it was Doyle who managed to edge his way in front to secure the lead by the time they hit turn two. Morgan settled into second while mid-field Lachlan McHugh began running the high line to get around Ben Hilder, all with Peter Lack coming on strong and joining the battle. Steven Johnson, Paul Rooks and Kristy Bonsey had a close race at the rear of the field until Rooks pulled out with ongoing mechanical issues on board the Q47 racer that is usually piloted by Andrew Liebke. Lack was all over the back of Hilder, searching tirelessly for a way through, until suddenly pulling to the infield and circulating slowly on the bike-track just a couple of laps from home. Meanwhile McHugh was closing in on Brent Aprile and Richard Morgan, eventually finding the right opening to get ahead of Aprile and set his sights firmly on Morgan. Scott Doyle went on to take the win ahead of Richard Morgan and Lachlan McHugh, with Brent Aprile, Ben Hilder, Steven Johnson, Kristy Bonsey and Peter Lack rounding out the finishers. Paul Rooks unfortunately did not finish the event and would not make it back trackside for the rest of the evening.

Jake Tranter and Matthew Butler shared the front row for the start of heat three, and while the pair raced wheel-to-wheel across the line and into turn one, it was Butler who managed to take control of the race, leaving Tranter to settle for second while behind them Mitchell Gee raced around David Murcott and began challenging Tranter for second. Bryan Mann worked the high line in his battle with Andrew Scheuerle, with Mann soon opening a small margin on his rival while closing in on Murcott. Tranter soon had both Gee and Murcott on his tail, with Gee quickly finding his way in front and Murcott stepping up the pressure. Matthew Butler went on to take the win ahead of Mitchell Gee, Jake Tranter and David Murcott. Bryan Mann crossed the line in fifth and led Andrew Scheuerle, Brad Ayers and Clem Hoffmans home.

Heat four hit the track Rob Hamilton and Matthew Butler set to share the front row for the start. Butler got a great start and had settled into the race lead by the time they hit turn one. Hamilton immediately found himself under fire from Kevin Titman, and while Titman pushed hard on the high side coming out of turn two, Hamilton fought back hard on the low side. Titman managed to make his way into second by the end of the first lap, while behind him Luke Oldfield raced under Scott Doyle, and Mitchell Gee got too sideways in turn two, almost being collected by Steven Johnson and Andrew Marks as they argued over positions at the tail end of the field. Johnson slipped under Doyle in turn four, with Gee quick to follow, leaving Doyle and Marks to battle over the minor places. Johnson and Gee quickly began closing in on Hamilton, but Doyle was trying to stay with them, soon challenging Gee for position once more. Doyle raced under Gee as they headed down the back straight, with Gee immediately fighting back underneath Doyle as they rounded turns three and four. Doyle then came back hard on the high side as they entered turn one, and managing to secure the advantage by the time they hit turn two. A few laps later, with the white flag in the air, the pair were again side-by-side as they entered turn one. Gee was on the inside but contact between the pair saw Doyle pull to the infield with just three quarters of a lap to run. Meanwhile Steven Johnson and Rob Hamilton had been having a brilliant race mid-field, but they too came together on the final lap, leaving Hamilton stranded on the track high in turn two and facing the wrong way. Matthew Butler had already taken the win with Kevin Titman in second ahead of Luke Oldfield. Steven Johnson was officially fourth and led Mitchell Gee, Andrew Marks and Clem Hoffmans across the line. Rob Hamilton was classed as the final finisher of the race while Scott Doyle unfortunately failed to finish the event.

Jake Tranter and Ben Hilder shared the front row for the start of heat five, with David Murcott and Brent Aprile from row two. The first start was aborted when officials deemed Tranter to have jumped the start, relegating him to the second row for the start and gifting pole position to David Murcott. Murcott got the jump on the start and quickly settled into the lead, with Hilder a strong second. Andrew Scheuerle shot up the inside of Aprile in the opening couple of corners, before trying to race under Tranter as they entered turn three. Scheuerle finally managed to get the job done as they completed the first lap, while Brad Ayers tried to race underneath Lachlan McHugh. McHugh managed to hang on to his position before pulling slightly ahead of Ayers and putting the challenge to Aprile, before a small mistake in turn four cost McHugh ground and left him in a tense battle with Ayers once more. Ayers raced hard on the bottom, managing to get back in front of McHugh, only for McHugh to fight back on the inside as they came out of turn two and headed down the back straight. Contact between the right rear of the NQ23 racer of McHugh and the left front of the NQ11 of Ayers almost spelt disaster for both drivers. Ayers made contact with the wall in turn three, enough to leave him disappointed and out of the race, while McHugh was able to drive away from the incident and continue the race on the restart. David Murcott led the restart with six laps left to run and Andrew Scheuerle right on his tail. Murcott and Scheuerle quickly opened a comfortable margin over their rivals while McHugh began trying to find a way past Aprile and Tranter closed in on Hilder. David Murcott went on to take the win ahead of Andrew Scheuerle, Ben Hilder, Jake Tranter, Brent Aprile, Lachlan McHugh and Anthony Lambert. Brad Ayers did not finish the event.

The sixth and final heat event of the night saw Richard Morgan and Steve Greer from the front row to lead the eight-car field to the green. Morgan got the best start and quickly settled into the race lead, while Greer held down second as Peter Lack took to the high line from position four and began challenging for second. Lack raced around the outside of Greer as they headed down the back straight for the first time, however contact between the pair ended with Greer circulating on the bike track on the edge of the infield for half a lap before rejoining the race and then spinning to a stop in turn two and bringing the race under caution. Morgan led the restart from Lack and Brandon Rawlings with nine laps still to run and both Brent Kratzmann and Bryan Mann eager to make their way close to the front of the field. Morgan got a brilliant start out in front, while Lack found himself under fire from a very hard-charging Rawlings, all the while the battle behind them between Kratzmann and Mann was beginning to heat up. Rawlings was all over Lack and had a big look on the inside as they navigated their way through turns three and four but Lack managed to hang on to his position. After only a few more laps the race was again brought to a stop when Greer ran over the right rear of Mark Pholi and ended up colliding hard with the wall coming out of turn four. Greer was not injured in the crash but was out for the rest of the night. Richard Morgan led the restart with five laps left to run and Peter Lack now on his tail. Brent Kratzmann started putting pressure on Brandon Rawlings, while defending his position from Bryan Mann, but it was Richard Morgan who would take the heat race win and transfer into the Dash event. Peter Lack finished second and led Brandon Rawlings, Brent Kratzmann, Bryan Mann, Mark Pholi and Kristy Bonsey across the line. Steve Greer did not finish the event.

Luke Oldfield led the points going into the Dash event, inverting the top four starters in a pre-dash random draw. This left David Murcott and Andrew Scheuerle from the front row and while the pair raced side-by-side to the first corner, Murcott on the low side managed to secure the lead. Luke Oldfield used the high line to get ahead of Lachlan McHugh before switching to the bottom to slide beautifully underneath Scheuerle while entering turn two. Unfortunately for Oldfield Scheuerle then had the better line coming out of turn two and quickly regained his position as they raced into turn three. Brandon Rawlings, Matthew Butler, Scott Doyle and Richard Morgan battled at the tail of the field, with Doyle loosing ground after slamming the wall coming out of turn two, leaving Morgan to chase Butler. David Murcott went on to take the win and, whilst admitting he would love to take up the Kratzmann Caravans Challenge and invert the top fourteen starters for the A-Main event, last night track conditions were not ideal for a lot a passing, especially in a quality field. Murcott elected to start from pole position with Andrew Scheuerle who had finished second in the Dash event, alongside. Luke Oldfield finished the Dash in third and led Lachlan McHugh, Brandon Rawlings, Matt Butler, Richard Morgan and Scott Doyle across the line.

Ten cars lined up for he start of 12-lap B-Main event, with Ben Hilder from pole position and Jake Tranter alongside. Hilder and Tranter raced side-by-side into the first corner but it was Hilder who managed to secure the race lead with Rob Hamilton briefly in third before Steven Johnson swept underneath as they rounded the second corner of the race. Andrew Marks and Clem Hoffmans had a great race at the rear of the field, with Marks working the high line trying to find a way around Hoffmans. After a few laps Marks managed to pull off the pass as they raced through turn four, only for Hoffmans to regain his position a lap later. The race was quickly brought under caution though after Anthony Lambert and Brad Ayers came together in turn two, leaving Lambert stranded on the track with enough front end damage to end his race. Ayers was also unable to restart the event. Hilder led the restart with seven laps left to run and Tranter, Johnson and Mark Pholi on his tail. Hoffmans and Marks resumed their battle at the rear of the field, while Kristy Bonsey tried to find a way underneath Rob Hamilton. Ben Hilder took the win and was followed across the line by Jake Tranter, Steven Johnson and Mark Pholi, all four earning a start in the A-Main event. Rob Hamilton finished fifth and led Kristy Bonsey, Clem Hoffmans and Andrew Marks across the line. Brad Ayers and Anthony Lambert did not finish the event.

Eighteen cars started the eventful and action packed 30-lap A-Main event, with David Murcott and Andrew Scheuerle to share the front row for the start. Murcott got the jump on the start and quickly settled into the race lead, while Scheuerle held down second and Luke Oldfield and Lachlan McHugh began arguing over third, a battle that eventually became one for second, but one that lasted virtually the entire race. Brent Kratzmann had a brilliant start on the low line, racing underneath Bryan Mann, Richard Morgan and Scott Doyle all before they hit turn two. Doyle tried to fight back on the high side, but had to contend with Morgan on the bottom, while behind them Kevin Titman was trying to climb his way closer to the front of the field as he searched high and low for a way past Bryan Mann, while defending his position from Mitchell Gee. Peter Lack soon joined the mid-field battle, taking to the high line in spectacular Lack fashion, trying to race around the outside of both Gee and Titman, before setting his sights on Scott Doyle and Bryan Mann. The battle between Lack, Gee, Titman and Doyle was captivating the crowd, while at the tail of the field Ben Hilder, Jake Tranter, Steven Johnson and Mark Pholi had a great battle going amongst themselves, all the while the race leaders were closing in. Unfortunately for Murcott he got caught up with the lapped car of Mark Pholi in turn two, spinning the Q83 racer to a stop. Murcott was relegated to the rear of the field for the restart, thus gifting the lead to Andrew Scheuerle.

Andrew Scheuerle led the restart from Lachlan McHugh and Luke Oldfield, with Brandon Rawlings, Brent Kratzmann and Richard Morgan all close behind with twenty-two laps left to run. Bryan Mann took to the high line in impressive form, racing his way around Matthew Butler before setting his sights on Richard Morgan. Only a lap after getting around Butler Mann made his move on Morgan, only for Morgan to fight back hard to regain his position. Meanwhile towards the rear of the field David Murcott was trying to weave his way through slower traffic to make his way back to the front, while mid-field Kevin Titman, Matthew Butler and Mitchell Gee had an enthralling battle that saw positions change several times. With the leaders again approaching lapped traffic, some quick reflexes saved Scheuerle, McHugh and Oldfield from becoming entangled in an incident in turn four that started with Steven Johnson spinning the Q27 racer, and also then involved Mark Pholi. Pholi was able to restart at the rear of the field but Johnson’s race was over with damage to the steering on the Q27 enough to see him retire to the infield.

With thirteen laps left to run Andrew Scheuerle led the field away with Lachlan McHugh, Luke Oldfield, Brandon Rawlings and Brent Kratzmann in hot pursuit. McHugh was all over the back of Scheuerle, while Kratzmann had a big look up the inside of Rawlings and Bryan Mann instantly took to the high side to race around Richard Morgan before putting the challenge to Kratzmann. Morgan fought back trying to regain his position from Mann, while Kratzmann slipped underneath Rawlings in turn two just moments before the race was again brought under caution, this time for the spun car of Mitchell Gee in turn two, with Jake Tranter also stopped near the fence.

Andrew Scheuerle led the restart with twelve laps to run, with Luke Oldfield putting all kinds of pressure on Lachlan McHugh as they fought over second and Bryan Mann took to the high line to try and race around Brent Kratzmann, while Kratzmann searched the low side trying to get back past Brandon Rawlings. Kratzmann managed to secure fourth but both Rawlings and Mann were charging hard and challenging for the position. Meanwhile things between McHugh and Oldfield were only getting more exciting, as Oldfield raced under McHugh as they raced through turn four. However the race was almost immediately brought under caution when Kevin Titman had a spin low on the track entering turn two.

Andrew Scheuerle led the restart probably blissfully unaware of the battle raging behind him, with Oldfield taking the green ahead of McHugh. McHugh though was determined to regain his position and the moment the race was back under green he took to the high line and raced his way around Oldfield to regain second by the end of the first lap. Brent Kratzmann was right there too, having a big look up the inside of Oldfield as they completed the first lap of the restart, but couldn’t quite get the job done. Kratzmann had another big look in turn one before Oldfield committed to the high line and stepped up the pressure on McHugh, taking second again just as the race was again brought under caution. This time it was Brent Aprile stopped in turn two. Unfortunately for Aprile he was unable to continue the event.

Still with ten laps on the board Andrew Scheuerle continued to lead when the race resumed. McHugh got a brilliant start and by the time they were exiting turn two McHugh was challenging Scheuerle on the high line as they raced for the lead. With nine laps left to run the race was again under caution, the cone having been hit on the previous restart and left lying precariously on the track. Scheuerle again led the field to the green, with McHugh right with him. Bryan Mann raced around the outside of Brent Kratzmann as they headed into turn one while Oldfield managed to get underneath McHugh as they exited turn two. Kratzmann fought back to regain his position from Mann, sliding beautifully under the Q16 racer in turn three while further back in the field chaos unfolded as the mid-field pack tried to make their way through turn four. The race was again brought under caution, with David Murcott and Scott Doyle both involved and, unfortunately, both out of the race.

Still with nine laps left to run Andrew Scheuerle again led the restart from Lachlan McHugh, Luke Oldfield, Brent Kratzmann and Bryan Mann. Ben Hilder and Brandon Rawlings were having a great race mid-field as Hilder tried the make his way underneath Rawlings, while Peter Lack ran the high line with Kevin Titman underneath. Mitchell Gee looped the Q41 racer in turn four and while he managed to straighten the car and keep it going, it was short lived as his team-mate Brandon Rawlings rode out a massive crash going into turn one. Rawlings was quick to exit the car but would take no further part in the race.

With eight laps still to run Andrew Scheuerle again led the restart from Lachlan McHugh, Luke Oldfield, Brent Kratzmann and Bryan Mann. Oldfield tried his hand at the low line, putting a serious challenge to McHugh, soon stealing second once more, while Mann committed to the high line again as he tried to find a way around Kratzmann, all the while Richard Morgan was starting to have a look at making his way into the top five. McHugh made the high side work for him and quickly ran back around the outside of Oldfield to regain second as Kratzmann defended his position from Mann. Further back in the field Kevin Titman and Ben Hilder were having a brilliant race but with just three laps left to run Matthew Butler spun to a stop in turn four and brought the race under caution.

With the field so bunched up and only three laps left to run, there was never any doubt the final three laps were going to be spectacular. Andrew Scheuerle again led them to the green, with McHugh taking to the high side and trying a bold outside passing move as he and Scheuerle raced down the back straight. It could have so easily ended in disaster for both but it had the fans captivated as they raced ever closer to the chequered flag. Andrew Scheuerle managed to hang on to take the win with Lachlan McHugh second and Luke Oldfield in third. Brent Kratzmann had a brilliant run to finish fourth while Bryan Mann rounded out the top five. Ben Hilder survived the chaos of the A-Main and managed to finish a very impressive sixth after transferring from the B-Main, with Peter Lack officially seventh ahead of Mark Pholi, Mitchell Gee, Matthew Butler and Kevin Titman, who had spun in the final corner of the race whilst running just outside the top five. Richard Morgan, Brandon Rawlings, David Murcott, Scott Doyle, Brent Aprile, Jake Tranter and Steven Johnson all failed to finish the event.

Sprintcars Queensland will take next weekend off and return to AusDeck Patios Archerfield Speedway the following weekend, on Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 April 2016 for two spectacular nights of racing in the Hungry Jacks 2015-2016 Queensland Sprintcar Title. Be sure to get yourself out trackside to see all the racing action for yourself - these boys and girls really do know how to put on a spectacular show. And don’t forget to pop on down to the pits after the program concludes so you can meet the drivers and see their cars up close. See you all trackside!